Dodgers Get to Smith in the 10th and Defeat Astros in the 11th, 6-4

The Dave Smith mystique, if not obliterated, was first exposed to scrutiny and later proven to be penetrable, after all, Thursday night as the Dodgers and the Houston Astros engaged in another wild encounter that won’t soon be forgotten.

Smith, the ace Astro reliever who had not allowed a run in 22 appearances this season, was the subject of protests concerning his alleged scuffing of the ball in the ninth inning. Then, in the 10th, the Dodgers made scuffs of their own by scoring the go-ahead run off Smith, breaking his streak of 27 scoreless innings.

That, however, was far from the end of the action for the 16,211 fans at the Astrodome.

The Dodger bullpen, which has combined for two fewer saves than Smith, let the lead vanish in the bottom of the 10th, Alejandro Pena giving up a bad-bounce single for the tying run with two out.

So, it took an 11th inning before the Dodgers finally were able to overcome the Astros, Steve Sax slapping a single up the middle to score two runs and give the Dodgers a 6-4 win.

Well, it wasn’t officially a win until Dodger reliever Brian Holton retired the Astros in the bottom of the 11th, certainly no sure thing considering that Holton was largely responsible for the Dodgers’ loss Wednesday in San Diego.

Holton was able to dismiss the Astros without incident, thus giving Pena his first win since last July and only his second since 1984. But the Dodger bullpen played merely supporting roles in a drama that was quite entertaining and occasionally controversial, which is becoming a habit between these teams.

“I think this is the best game we’ve played in two years,” shortstop Dave Anderson said. “This game had everything.”

Indeed, there were several two-out rallies by each team, faltering relief pitching and the dispute over alleged cheating by Smith, perhaps baseball’s best short reliever.

Sax was the offensive star for the Dodgers, delivering a run-scoring double in the 10th to give the Dodgers a 4-3 lead they later squandered and then singling home those two runs with two out in the 11th to make it 6-4, Dodgers.

No less important to the win was Anderson, a stand-in for starter Mariano Duncan, who was spiked in the right knee by the sliding Bill Doran in the seventh inning and will miss 10 days.

Anderson was the first Dodger to break the Smith spell, launching a leadoff triple to right-center field in the 10th. Sax then hit a high-chopping ground ball over Craig Reynolds’ head at shortstop for a double that scored Anderson.

Ron Mathis replaced Smith, not involved in the decision, in the 11th, and it may have been a bad decision on the part of Astro Manager Hal Lanier.

Beleaguered pinch-hitter Ken Landreaux, batting just .207, started the rally with a single. Then, Anderson doubled down the left-field line to move Landreaux to third. That was followed by Sax’s game-winning single up the middle.

“We could have just hung our heads and laid down after we lost the lead,” Anderson said. “But we didn’t. We kept fighting back. Any time you can beat a team like this and score off a pitcher like Dave Smith, you gotta be happy. I mean, no one’s gotten to Smith this year.”

Allegations of doctoring the ball, limited only to Mike Scott last season, have encompassed the entire Astro pitching staff this season. In mid-April at Dodger Stadium, Scott was subjected to a dozen inspections of the baseballs he was throwing. The fact he completely baffled the Dodgers by throwing a one-hitter had much to do with it.

But this was the most concerted effort to expose Smith, if there indeed is something to be uncovered. The motivation was apparent, as Smith dismissed the Dodgers in the ninth.

The Dodgers checked the ball three times in the ninth, but home plate umpire Jerry Crawford threw the ball back to Smith each time. After Smith struck out pinch-hitter Ralph Bryant to end the ninth, Astro catcher Ronn Reynolds tossed the ball back toward the mound, where it rested until the Dodgers took the field.

Dodger catcher Mike Scioscia walked to the mound and inspected the ball. Scioscia said he found a noticeable scuff mark. He showed the ball to Crawford, who threw it out in apparent irritation.

That action sent the Dodger dugout into an uproar.

Manager Tom Lasorda and pitching coach Ron Perranoski argued with Crawford, Perranoski so vehemently that Crawford ejected him.

“I think Dave Smith is scuffing the ball,” Scioscia said. “I’d bet my house on it. But there’s nothing we can do about it; the umpire has to take some action, and he won’t.

“I showed the ball to Crawford and he said that he did see a scuff, but that it was from the ball rolling in the dirt, not from anything else. I know that Smith is scuffing the ball.”

Smith, a San Diego native, first laughed off the Dodger accusation, then became irritated.

“Where does Scioscia live?” Smith asked.

Told that it was Claremont, Smith sighed and said, “No, I’m happy with San Diego.”

But Smith later said that he resented the accusations. He said he had only been accused once before--by the Chicago Cubs.

“It’s annoying for me to toss the ball to the umpires and then have them toss it back,” he said. “The umpire never throws it out. I mean, it’s like they (the Dodgers) are calling Jerry Crawford a liar.

“I hope I face Scioscia tomorrow night. I’ll bet my house that I’ll get him out. I’m upset because we lost and because of this other thing. I mean, they win the game and they’re the ones talking about this stuff.”

Actually, the Dodgers were only talking about Smith in passing, since they were too busy celebrating the end of their three-game losing streak. It coincided with an early-morning workout Lasorda gave the team Thursday in hopes of breaking their poor play. Apparently, it helped.

Dodger Notes

Mariano Duncan needed three stitches above his right knee when he was spiked by Houston’s Bill Doran in the seventh inning. Duncan was carried off the field on a stretcher and taken to a hospital. He will miss 10 days because of the wound. Doran was attempting to steal second base and clipped Duncan’s right knee. . . . Among the activities in the Dodgers’ workout Thursday morning was Matt Young’s first pitching opportunity against live hitting since he strained a ligament in his left elbow on June 7 in Cincinnati. Young said he threw to five batters in a “simulated game” and reported no pain in his elbow. Young said that, barring complications overnight, he will be available to pitch tonight, then added: “But they won’t need me because Orel (Hershiser, tonight’s Dodger starter) is going nine (innings).” Young said a Reggie Williams fly ball to right field was the only ball hit in the air by the five batters he faced. However, he hit Alex Trevino in the left thigh with a pitch. . . . Len Matuszek remained hospitalized in Whittier Thursday after having surgery on his left foot Wednesday afternoon. Matuszek will be in a cast for three weeks. The Dodgers said Matuszek felt more pain than expected after the surgery, so he was held over an extra day at the hospital. The Dodgers said he is expected to be released today.